A circuit board is an ordinary board without any component, peripheral or electronic parts placed or mounted on it. However, it can be configured with these parts or components and after then, be called a Printed Circuit Board (PCB) or a digital circuit board.
The choice of a PCB to work with always borders on key metrics like the overall rated performance, the overall rated capabilities of the individual components and the different use cases of the PCB.
When it comes to choosing a PCB, you cannot just be limited to those factors. You also want to explore and get the best board. The Nexys 4 DDR, was at a time, one of the favorite digital circuit boards for PCB enthusiasts.
Although the manufacturer, Digilent has discontinued the production and replaced the same with the Nexys A7, it had used the board to offer some of the best configuration elements at the time.
Continue reading to find out everything you need to know about the Nexys 4 DDR.
What is Nexys 4 DDR?
It is a complete, in-house and ready-to-use digital circuit development platform by Digilent. The manufacturer created this platform as one of the major contributions to the furthered advancement of Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs).
The Artix Basis
At the time of the usage, the Nexys 4 DDR was based on the Artix-7 Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) from Xilinx.
Thus, through this basis, the Nexys 4 DDR was made compatible with some of the relevant products from Xilinx. Examples of these are the compatibilities with the Vivado Design Suite by Xilinx, and the ISE toolset. Through the ISE toolset, the Nexys 4 DDR leverages the functionalities of the integrated components like the EDK and the ChipScope.
More interesting is the fact that digital circuit designers are not short of tools to work with, as the ISE toolset also has some extensions. For example, Xilinx also offers the free WebPACK versions of the ISE toolset – a major contribution towards the affordability or zero-fee usage of these toolsets.
Nexys 4 DDR is Ideal for Multiple Uses
You can be sure that no matter the type of design or electronic device you want to configure, it can be done with the Nexys 4 DDR.
This is possible because of the support for multiple or several applications. Besides, the Nexys 4 DDR can fit into a variety of applications, without necessarily needing additional components to function.
In-House Configurations
Nexys 4 DDR is one of the Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) development platforms that champion the cause for in-system programming.
It actualizes this via the in-system programming via the support for several components. From built-in peripherals to other relevant parts, the Nexys 4 DDR ensures that most of the components needed for the configuration are inside the development platform.
Examples of the supported or integrated peripherals are a speaker amplifier, an accelerometer, multiple Input and Output (I/O) devices and MEMs digital microphone.
How to Optimize the Nexys 4 DDR for the Best Performance
Sometimes, the major step to take towards configuring a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) is to use a reliable development platform – an example is the Nexys 4 DDR.
The next step is to understand the schematics or specifics of the platform. In the case of the Nexys 4 DDR FPGA development platform, it can be used as a tool to optimize the FPGA’s performance.
For example, the Nexys 4 DDR is based on or pegged to the Xilinx FPGA with part number XC7A100T-1CSG324C. In light of that, it is pegged to an FPGA in the Xilinx Artix-7 series of FPGAs.
Interestingly, this basis also provides the Nexys 4 DDR with the high-capacity design of the host FPGA, in addition to availing it to multiple ports and a collection of Universal Serial Buses (USBs).
It also provides the host FPGA with the generous external memories, which all combined, helps the digital circuit board platform to host different kinds of designs, such as powerful embedded processors and introductory combinational circuits.
How to Configure the FPGA
The host FPGA, the Xilinx XC7A100T-1CSG324C, needs to be optimized or configured before it can be used on the Nexys 4 DDR FPGA development platform. To that end, the digital circuit designer needs to get that aspect of the design job done first.
If you are working with RayPCB, we will help you configure your host Xilinx Artix-7 FPGA before it can be used on the Nexys 4 DDR. We follow the four (4) major configuration processes highlighted by the manufacturer.
These processes include:
1. File Transfer
We will initiate a transfer of the programming file from a Universal Serial Bus (USB) memory stick attached to the USB HID port.
2. PC-Based Programming
We can also initiate a programming of the host FPGA using a Personal Computer (PC). In this case, we are to align the PC to use the Digilent USB-JTAG circuitry (portJ6, labeled “PROG”). By using that, the PC can then be used to initiate a real-time programming of the Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA).
Note that this process works best if there is power supply to the FPGA.
3. Micro SD Programming
It is also possible to use a Storage Device (SD) for the programming. For this to happen, the programming file must be transferred from the Micro Storage Device (SD) card to the Xilinx XC7A100T-1CSG324C FPGA.
4. File Storage and Transfer
The last of the four (4) options is to get a Non-Volatile Serial (SPI) flash with a pre-stored programming file.
The programming file would then be transferred via the SPI port to the XC7A100T-1CSG324C FPGA.
Features of the Nexys 4 DDR
Below are some of the features you can spot on the Nexys 4 DDR FPGA development platform:
- The Digilent USB-JTAG: this is a dedicated port for facilitating real-time programming and communication (transfer of programming file and other related data) to the FPGA.
- XADC: Nexys 4 DDR has an on-chip Analog-to-Digital Converter (XADC) that helps in the conversion of analog signals to the digital signal variant.
- PDM microphone
- USB-UART bridge
- Micro SD Card Connector
- 6 user switches
Final Words
The Nexys 4 DDR has since been discontinued. For more information, you may want to check out the replacement – the Nexys A7.
